An honor long overdue

School to recognize ex-athletic director battling dementia

Dan Viola served as the athletic director at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi from 1997 to early 2006.
Caller-Times file photo

CORPUS CHRISTI - Everyone will recognize Dan Viola tonight.

They will remember the Dan Viola who built the Texas A&M-Corpus; Christi athletic program. The former Islanders athletic director set the foundation for entry to the Southland Conference.

The university will recognize him with induction into the athletic Hall of Honor. But many of those attending the dinner may not recognize the Dan Viola who is there.

And there's a chance he won't recognize them, or even realize that he's being honored.

Viola suffers from Frontotemporal Dementia, also known as FTD or Picks Disease. His communication skills have diminished, so he will not give a speech tonight at the University Center. His weight has increased dramatically. He cannot drive. He cannot be left on his own.

He still has his good days, though. He still plays golf, just as was his trademark in Corpus Christi. He still has some long-term memory.

And he still can be honored. But he might not know that tonight signifies an appreciation of his work.

Jeff Viola gave his older brother -- who now lives in California -- news of the induction. But it didn't seem to register with the person who had presided over these events in the past.

&quot;I'd like to say he is aware because that's why we're coming,&quot; said Jeff Viola, who is his brother's secondary caregiver. &quot;When I asked him about it the other day, he asked if we're taking a road trip, and if we were flying or driving.

Jeff Viola, who first noticed changes in his brother in 2006, wanted to create awareness of the ailment. He wanted to show why his brother might have behaved oddly or indifferent at times.

Former A&M-Corpus; Christi associate athletic director Brian DeAngelis didn't notice much of a change in Dan Viola. Ronnie Arrow, the former Islanders men's basketball coach, saw some forgetfulness and what he felt was standoffishness at the time, but nothing out of the ordinary.

Former women's basketball coach Jodi Kest, who began at the school in 2002, picked up on some differences in Viola around 2005. There were some stilted conversations, an occasional puzzled look, some memory lapses and shifts in personality.

&quot;I knew he wasn't quite the same person he was in my first two years,&quot; Kest said. &quot;I couldn't pinpoint it. I knew there were changes, but didn't know what specifically. It wasn't the same person that hired me, and not the same person I was with the first two years. At least now maybe I know why.&quot;

Catherine Pace-Savitsky, the executive director of the Association for Frontotemporal Dementias, said the disease makes it's tough to figure where common missteps end and a real health problem begins.

FTD has numerous symptoms. It can reduce speech and hinder judgment. Apathy is a symptom. It can lead to compulsive behavior such as repetitive eating. All eventually impacted Viola.

Social skills and personalities change. Intellect, memory and language are hurt. Onset can start subtly.

Viola had the energy and know-how when he started with the Islanders. He was hired in 1997 with the task of building an athletic program that had been dormant for 23 years. He loved the challenge of something new. He hired coaches and administrators. He guided the program through provisional Division I membership. He constantly lobbied conferences to gain admission.

Arrow, DeAngelis and Kest all said the recognition is overdue.

&quot;We were there for almost the beginning, and saw what he had to do and the way he envisioned everything,&quot; DeAngelis said. &quot;It's now paying off. He set up staffs and set up coaches. That structure got us into the Southland. He never minded when you told him what you thought. He didn't want a yes-man.

&quot;Maybe he should have been the first one inducted when they set this up.&quot;

Viola stepped down in Feb. 2006, little more than five months after A&M-Corpus; Christi was invited to the Southland. He cited personal reasons at the time, but said it was not health-related.

University president Flavius Killebrew saw no indication that Viola was afflicted.

&quot;Not that I could say. I only knew Dan a short period of time, and I'm not a physician,&quot; Killebrew said. &quot;I wouldn't have known what to look for. That's really a sad disease. I hate that it happened, for he and his family.&quot;

Viola briefly took a job with John Paul II High. But when Jeff Viola came to town during the summer of 2006, he noticed a change. His brother seemed more distant and depressed than earlier in the year, when Jeff Viola last saw him.

&quot;It's a pretty gradual progression,&quot; Jeff Viola said. &quot;The way that you notice it most is if you see Dan for a couple days and then come back three months later. If you're with him day to day, it's gradual.&quot;

Jeff Viola had his brother medically checked after the odd behavior became more pronounced. Eventually FTD was diagnosed, and Jeff brought him out to California.

At 56, Dan Viola is at an age when he should be taking care of his mother. Instead, 80-year old Glenna Viola is his primary caregiver. Someone now has to be with him 24 hours a day. Someone must give him his medication.

He cannot drive because judgment is impaired. Someone must be near him at all times in case he does something rash. He still plays golf -- and still beats his brother -- and sometimes has good days where he can carry on conversations.

But usually talk with Viola might consist of only a few words. That makes coping with the disease frustrating for those around him.

&quot;The conversation is pretty much limited to one- or two-word responses these days,&quot; Jeff Viola said. &quot;Usually it's 'Yes' 'No' or 'I don't know'. That's part of the disease. You can get a better conversation if you lead him and keep it to stuff that happened in the past.&quot;

Jeff Viola said he is grateful his brother is being honored. He does not want people to be shocked when they see his brother tonight. He wants people to remember the good times. He wants people to think of the hard work his brother put into building the athletic program.

For one more night at least, Dan Viola will be recognized for his accomplishments. Everyone in attendance will remember what he did.